{"id":79,"date":"2024-02-22T19:03:36","date_gmt":"2024-02-23T00:03:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/capufren100\/chapter\/2-16-structure-formation-des-questions\/"},"modified":"2025-12-11T20:30:59","modified_gmt":"2025-12-12T01:30:59","slug":"grammaire-formation-des-questions","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/capufren100\/chapter\/grammaire-formation-des-questions\/","title":{"raw":"Grammaire 2: asking questions","rendered":"Grammaire 2: asking questions"},"content":{"raw":"

On \u00e9tudie !<\/span><\/p>\r\n \r\n

\r\n

There are four ways to form \"yes\" or \"no\" questions.<\/p>\r\n(a) by using a change in intonation. In everyday conversation, the most common way is to rise your voice.\u00a0 We have seen this already with \u00c7a va ?<\/strong> where the statement \u00c7a va<\/strong> is said with a questioning intonation. \u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\r\n

(b) by simply adding Est-ce que...<\/strong> to the beginning of any statement. Note that Est-ce que<\/strong> is contracted to Est-ce qu'<\/strong> when followed by a vowel\/mute h.<\/p>\r\n(c) By adding <\/span>n'est-ce pas? <\/strong>at the end of a sentence. One does so to ask for confirmation of the statement.<\/span>\r\n

(d) By inversion of the subject and verb. Like English, French uses inversion to form a question in which the verb comes before the subject (i.e. Is he there?) In writing, you must connect the verb and subject with a hyphen (-).<\/p>\r\n

Here is a summary of the four ways to form \"yes\" or \"no\" questions:<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n \r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Structure<\/th>\r\nExemple<\/th>\r\nTraduction<\/th>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Intonation<\/strong><\/td>\r\nTu habites \u00e0 Vancouver?<\/td>\r\nYou live in Vancouver?<\/em><\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
E<\/strong>st-ce que (qu')<\/b><\/td>\r\n\r\n

Est-ce que tu habites \u00e0 Vancouver?<\/p>\r\n

Est-ce qu\u2019elle habite \u00e0 Vancouver?<\/p>\r\n<\/td>\r\n

Do you live in Vancouver?<\/em>\r\n\r\nDoes she live in Vancouver<\/em>\r\n\r\n <\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
...,\u00a0<\/span>n\u2019est-ce pas ?<\/b><\/td>\r\nTu habites \u00e0 Vancouver, n\u2019est-ce pas?<\/span>\r\n\r\nElle habite \u00e0 Vancouver, n\u2019est-ce pas ?<\/span><\/td>\r\nYou live in Vancouver, don't you?<\/em>\r\n\r\nShe lives in Vancouver, doesn't she?<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Inversion<\/strong><\/td>\r\nHabites-tu \u00e0 Vancouver?<\/td>\r\nDo you live in Vancouver?<\/span><\/em><\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<\/tbody>\r\n<\/table>\r\n \r\n

D'autres questions<\/strong> (other questions)<\/h3>\r\n
\r\n

Other useful questions include Qui est-ce?<\/strong> (to ask about people) and\u00a0 Qu'est-ce que c'est?<\/strong> (to ask about things).<\/p>\r\n

Carefully look at the formulation and English equivalencies in the table below. You might have noted that the responses to both question starts with\u00a0C'est<\/strong> (C<\/strong><\/span>e<\/del><\/strong> + est<\/strong>) which reuses the same verb in the question (est<\/strong>)<\/span>. <\/span>Practice asking <\/span>Qu'est-ce que c'est ?<\/a><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Questions<\/strong><\/th>\r\nR\u00e9ponses<\/strong><\/th>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
-Qui est-ce? <\/strong>(Who is that)<\/em><\/td>\r\nC'est<\/strong> Jaspreet\/C'est<\/strong> une \u00e9tudiante de fran\u00e7ais. (This is Jaspreet\/that's a (female) French student)<\/em><\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
-Qu'est-ce que c'est?<\/strong>\u00a0<\/span>(What is that?)<\/em>\r\n<\/strong><\/td>\r\nC'est<\/strong>\u00a0un stylo.<\/span>\u00a0(That is a pen.)<\/em>\r\n<\/strong><\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<\/tbody>\r\n<\/table>\r\n

Ce (C')<\/strong> <\/span><\/h3>\r\nCe (c')<\/strong> is a subject pronoun <\/span>is used to identified people and things. It refers to nouns, either masculine or feminine, singular or plural.<\/span>\r\n
C'est<\/strong> Catherine. This is\/That is Catherine.<\/em>\r\n\r\nC'est<\/strong> un \u00e9tudiant. This is\/That is a (male) student.<\/em>\r\n\r\nCe sont<\/strong> des \u00e9tudiants. These\/Those are students.<\/em><\/blockquote>\r\n \r\n

Note<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n

\r\n
\r\n

In the question\u00a0<\/span>Comment s'appelle-t-il ?<\/strong> which we have used in class (which is another way to ask about people's identity), a <\/span>-t<\/strong>- is inserted (with hyphens) to prevent two vowels from blending together. For example, without the <\/span>-t-<\/strong>, the end of\u00a0<\/span>s'appelle<\/strong>\u00a0would merge with\u00a0<\/span>il<\/strong>, and it could be difficult to understand.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n

\r\n
\r\n\r\n \r\n

Ressources\u00a0suppl\u00e9mentaires<\/span><\/h3>\r\n

Watch this video tutorial:\u00a0asking questions with est-ce que<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\r\n

Watch this video tutorial:\u00a0asking questions with inversion<\/a>s.<\/p>\r\n

Watch this video tutorial:\u00a0asking questions with n'est-ce pas<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\r\n

Find out more about question tags<\/a> in French and when to use n\u2019est-ce pas<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n \r\n\r\n \r\n\r\n<\/div>","rendered":"

On \u00e9tudie !<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\n

There are four ways to form “yes” or “no” questions.<\/p>\n

(a) by using a change in intonation. In everyday conversation, the most common way is to rise your voice.\u00a0 We have seen this already with \u00c7a va ?<\/strong> where the statement \u00c7a va<\/strong> is said with a questioning intonation. \u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

(b) by simply adding Est-ce que…<\/strong> to the beginning of any statement. Note that Est-ce que<\/strong> is contracted to Est-ce qu’<\/strong> when followed by a vowel\/mute h.<\/p>\n

(c) By adding <\/span>n’est-ce pas? <\/strong>at the end of a sentence. One does so to ask for confirmation of the statement.<\/span><\/p>\n

(d) By inversion of the subject and verb. Like English, French uses inversion to form a question in which the verb comes before the subject (i.e. Is he there?) In writing, you must connect the verb and subject with a hyphen (-).<\/p>\n

Here is a summary of the four ways to form “yes” or “no” questions:<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Structure<\/th>\nExemple<\/th>\nTraduction<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n
Intonation<\/strong><\/td>\nTu habites \u00e0 Vancouver?<\/td>\nYou live in Vancouver?<\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
E<\/strong>st-ce que (qu’)<\/b><\/td>\n\n

Est-ce que tu habites \u00e0 Vancouver?<\/p>\n

Est-ce qu\u2019elle habite \u00e0 Vancouver?<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

Do you live in Vancouver?<\/em><\/p>\n

Does she live in Vancouver<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

…,\u00a0<\/span>n\u2019est-ce pas ?<\/b><\/td>\nTu habites \u00e0 Vancouver, n\u2019est-ce pas?<\/span><\/p>\n

Elle habite \u00e0 Vancouver, n\u2019est-ce pas ?<\/span><\/td>\n

You live in Vancouver, don’t you?<\/em><\/p>\n

She lives in Vancouver, doesn’t she?<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

Inversion<\/strong><\/td>\nHabites-tu \u00e0 Vancouver?<\/td>\nDo you live in Vancouver?<\/span><\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

 <\/p>\n

D’autres questions<\/strong> (other questions)<\/h3>\n
\n

Other useful questions include Qui est-ce?<\/strong> (to ask about people) and\u00a0 Qu’est-ce que c’est?<\/strong> (to ask about things).<\/p>\n

Carefully look at the formulation and English equivalencies in the table below. You might have noted that the responses to both question starts with\u00a0C’est<\/strong> (C<\/strong><\/span>e<\/del><\/strong> + est<\/strong>) which reuses the same verb in the question (est<\/strong>)<\/span>. <\/span>Practice asking <\/span>Qu’est-ce que c’est ?<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n
Questions<\/strong><\/th>\nR\u00e9ponses<\/strong><\/th>\n<\/tr>\n
-Qui est-ce? <\/strong>(Who is that)<\/em><\/td>\nC’est<\/strong> Jaspreet\/C’est<\/strong> une \u00e9tudiante de fran\u00e7ais. (This is Jaspreet\/that’s a (female) French student)<\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
-Qu’est-ce que c’est?<\/strong>\u00a0<\/span>(What is that?)<\/em>
\n<\/strong><\/td>\n		C’est<\/strong>\u00a0un stylo.<\/span>\u00a0(That is a pen.)<\/em>
\n<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Ce (C’)<\/strong> <\/span><\/h3>\n

Ce (c’)<\/strong> is a subject pronoun <\/span>is used to identified people and things. It refers to nouns, either masculine or feminine, singular or plural.<\/span><\/p>\n

C’est<\/strong> Catherine. This is\/That is Catherine.<\/em><\/p>\n

C’est<\/strong> un \u00e9tudiant. This is\/That is a (male) student.<\/em><\/p>\n

Ce sont<\/strong> des \u00e9tudiants. These\/Those are students.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

 <\/p>\n

Note<\/span><\/p>\n

\n
\n

In the question\u00a0<\/span>Comment s’appelle-t-il ?<\/strong> which we have used in class (which is another way to ask about people’s identity), a <\/span>-t<\/strong>– is inserted (with hyphens) to prevent two vowels from blending together. For example, without the <\/span>-t-<\/strong>, the end of\u00a0<\/span>s’appelle<\/strong>\u00a0would merge with\u00a0<\/span>il<\/strong>, and it could be difficult to understand.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

 <\/p>\n

Ressources\u00a0suppl\u00e9mentaires<\/span><\/h3>\n

Watch this video tutorial:\u00a0asking questions with est-ce que<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n

Watch this video tutorial:\u00a0asking questions with inversion<\/a>s.<\/p>\n

Watch this video tutorial:\u00a0asking questions with n’est-ce pas<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n

Find out more about question tags<\/a> in French and when to use n\u2019est-ce pas<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":1947,"menu_order":5,"template":"","meta":{"pb_show_title":"on","pb_short_title":"","pb_subtitle":"","pb_authors":[],"pb_section_license":""},"chapter-type":[49],"contributor":[],"license":[],"class_list":["post-79","chapter","type-chapter","status-publish","hentry","chapter-type-numberless"],"part":354,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/capufren100\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/79","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/capufren100\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/capufren100\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/chapter"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/capufren100\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1947"}],"version-history":[{"count":23,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/capufren100\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/79\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2531,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/capufren100\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/79\/revisions\/2531"}],"part":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/capufren100\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/parts\/354"}],"metadata":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/capufren100\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/79\/metadata\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/capufren100\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=79"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"chapter-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/capufren100\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapter-type?post=79"},{"taxonomy":"contributor","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/capufren100\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/contributor?post=79"},{"taxonomy":"license","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/capufren100\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/license?post=79"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}